Page 34 of Second Chance for the Single Mom

“Then you can pay,” he suggested. “I’m not above letting a woman pay for my meal.”

Nowthatsurprised me. When we were teenagers, Lucas always felt emasculated when I tried to pay for anything. I looked at him with new eyes, seeing a totally different man than I remembered.

“I thought you said you meal prep your lunches?”

Lucas shrugged. “I’ll make an exception. For you. We never got to catch up the other night.”

I smiled in spite of myself. “You’re right. We didn’t.”

For a moment, there was a connection between us. A spark of that chemistry as we both remembered the events from that sizzling night of fun two weeks ago.

“Friday? Noon?” he suggested, pointing across the parking lot. “That place with the yellow sign has great sandwiches. Especially the BLT.”

“I love BLTs,” I said.

“I remember,” Lucas said casually.

Last night while we were texting, I had wanted to connect with him. To find an excuse to talk, or maybe even see him again. But it didn’t feel right at the time. The vibe was off.

But this? It was easy. It was seamless.

“Yeah,” I said. “I’d like that.”

18

Jordan

Lucas was fucking things up all over again.

Back in high school, he had a lot going for him. He was a good-looking dude, and charming enough to draw women in. But whenever he dated someone for more than a month, he started pushing them away. He got lazy, took his girlfriend for granted, and eventually sabotaged the relationship entirely. I watched him do it with Haley and a handful of other women.

I thought he’d matured since then, but here he was, sabotaging himself once more. I was certain he had moved back to Vancouver to try to rekindle his relationship with Haley, yet he wouldn’t admit it. The foursome proved that the two of them still hadinsanechemistry.

But rather than going after her, he was sitting back, too scared to do anything.

The worst part about all of this? I saw all of it clearly. It was the same car wreck I’d seen over and over with the old Lucas. But I couldn’t say anything to him, because he was still too stubborn to admit it when called out—even by me, his best friend.

He needed to figure it out himself.

That was okay. I could force the issue. My accidental run-in with Haley at the park, and now her son’s participation in little league, gave me the perfect opportunity to play matchmaker. Lucas would get FOMO and ask her out himself.

Selfishly, I also wanted to see Haley again. She was fun to be around.

I told myself it had nothing to do with the fact that we had shared a filthy night of sex together, the memory of which I still couldn’t get out of my head.

Yeah. Lucas wasn’t the only one who could lie to himself.

At least I was partially aware of what I was doing.

Bran and Haley were already at the park when I got off work Tuesday afternoon. Before getting out of my truck, I took a moment to admire her feminine form from a distance. The pencil skirt and blouse accentuated her curves in a way that reminded me of our night together. I let the memory wash over me for a few seconds, then hopped out and joined them in the park.

“There’s my little slugger,” I called to Bran. “Did you bring it?”

“Bring what?” Bran asked in a high-pitched voice.

“Your A-game,” I replied, winking at Haley. “Because by the time I’m done with you, I expect you to be the best player on the team.”

His face lit up with excitement. “I’ll try!”

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